With a break from afternoon showers, we were finally able to meet with a professional photographer, Robert Batey (Robert Batey Photography) at Song Sparrow Lane. He took some great shots that we hope to share with you next week, but in the mean time here is a sneak peek!
The house looks great! Our clients will enjoy the house and views of Tellico Lake for years to come. There are some special things about the house that you may not notice from the picture. It looks like an unsuspecting driveway, right? We were able to store 3,000 gallons of rainwater in an underground tank below the pavers. Water from the driveway and the roof is filtered through the permeable pavers and is used for irrigation and to supply the water feature (bottom, left corner of this picture).
We have also recently received Energy Star Certification and the HERS Rating on the house. HERS is the Home Energy Rating System, a nationally recognized system for inspecting and calculating a home’s energy usage. The index starts at zero (a home using no energy from the grid) to 150; a standard new house is 100 and the average existing house is 130. The Song Sparrow Lane House received a score of 59! Elizabeth Eason Architecture and our clients are very proud of this result, which indicates an overall energy savings of 41%. Some of the measures taken to achieve this score include: a geothermal heating and cooling system, energy efficient appliances, climate-specific construction details, and of course the water collection features. To check on more energy saving ideas for your own home, go to www.resnet.us/smarthome.
Information gathered at www.resnet.us/hers-index.